Londonderry Aire - Cours

Music Arrangement Insights

I don't know why I make arrangements like that that I can't play. But anyway, I got the idea to use that technique from listening to Eric Johnson play White Cliffs of Dover.

I couldn't do the lick he did, so I kind of changed it and did my own. And I've never played that for him, but I gotta do it, send it to him or something.

Key Concepts

The Song Structure

• 1E Annie.
• Bass Notes: E, 1E, and E.
• Progression: 1 like 1E and E, 2E and E.
• Melody: Play melody against that.

Of course, I changed the chords around as usual to make it a little more interesting to me musically. But slowly, it's an open G there, another open G, another G flat 5 to an F sharp.

Key of B

This is in the key of B, of course. A lot of people don't like the key of B, but I find it very interesting because it hasn't been explored a lot by guitar players.

I've written a couple, maybe three tunes in the key of B.

The Bridge

Then the bridge is a crucial part. I try to make it sound like a bagpipe with that drone in there with the open B.

• Consider another fill: That's what I heard.
• Return to the 1: Notice I use that chord a lot instead of going straight to that.

Tension and Release: That's what music is all about, is tension and release, to me, anyway.

Progression Breakdown

Then I get off of it here, the 1E Annie.

• That's a raised nine.
• There's the nine.
• Here's the raised.

The progression would be an A flat 5 to an A flat 6 to a G. Then we go to C, which is up a half tune.

• That's A which is a 4 over a 5.
• Bass: B diminished with a C note in it.

Get that line that helps sustain.

Final Thoughts

It's just 1E, ante, 2E Annie. That's a B flat 9 with a flat 9 in it. It's like this chord, only you're up here at the nut, you see, to an E minor, then to a six minor, and finally to A minor.

I play that B against it, which is nice. That is a jazz chord. I don't know what it's called, but I learned that from Lennox.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.

• It's a flat nine.

Ending the Piece

The end is just almost chromatic with one line. I go to an A flat here, an F major 7, and F minor 7.

You can do whatever you want against that. Like, I think on the take, I did something very tough to play, but I think it's interesting.

Sustain Challenges: You know, you have trouble with sustain with a guitar, and this gives you a sustaining sound.

So practice. That's all I can tell you. I can't play it. Maybe you can!